The Broken Web
by Razell
Summary: The drow are rebelling, and Lolth's enemies are gathering their forces against her. A follow up to the events of 'Heroes'. Rated for some graphic violence.
1. Chapter 1

Falling

Rebels, all of them. Traitors. Chitine and drow alike. Fools. Lolth was not merely angered, she was totally enraged, entire noble houses were turning to other gods, Vhaeraun, Ghaunadaur, Selvetarm. _Selvetarm_. That name enraged her further, her champion, her grandson, stolen away, freed from her web. Freed to walk in the light, to bring drow into the light. A light she could never again know. And Eilistraee, that treacherous little slut, had stolen away thousands of drow, turning them back into dark elves, by her own death. In one of Lolth's greatest moments of victory, the death of her hated daughter, she had been tricked into defeat.

Ilmater, that weeping, masochistic human god had taken her portfolio, her place, and he was almost as pernicious a foe as she had been. The gods she had played against each other for so long had now allied against her.

At least Eilistraee was dead, her sacred Promenade destroyed by a wrathful Ghaunadaur, from whom she'd stolen the site eons ago. Even so, the bad blood between Ghaunadaur and the other members of The Dark Seldarine had apparently been set aside, for the moment, to be turned upon her.

Other gods of other pantheons had entered the fray, Bane held a particular attraction to many male drow. It was almost amusing that some drow were turning to gods of their sworn enemies, and some were even attempting to placate the Seldarine of the surface elves. Fools. As if those pompous idiots would ever accept a drow. They deserved the fate they would inevitably bring upon themselves.

But if Ilsensine decided to add his tentacles to the fray, Lolth knew she would be doomed.

"The Arach-Tinilith is on fire!" The panting priestess' voice was filled with horror and rage, "The followers of The Masked God have attacked! Matron, you must send arms!"

It was the latest in a string of acts that were tearing Menzoberranzan apart. Slave revolts, noble Houses falling away openly to other faiths, the city was in chaos. And Matron Mother Quenthel Baenre seemed singularly unconcerned with the situation. Quenthel looked oddly at the woman, "The Melee Magthere is there, is it not?" "It is a school for unblooded _boys_! Many of them have already joined the enemy! How could the rest defeat the Nightmasks?" Quenthel considered for a moment, "You're right, but the followers of Vhaeraun will be less likely to harm males." She paused, then smiled, a smile like the twitching of a corpse, "No, evacuate Melee Magthere. I will not send our future warriors to their deaths."

"But The Arach-Tinilith!"

"It can be rebuilt. Lolth favors the strong, this is doubtless her way of weeding out the weak among us." She rose, "Have faith, my sister. All will be revealed soon enough."

Lolth did not notice, immediately, the destruction of her school, she had so many problems to deal with.

Keptolo was no threat, at least. He was like a parasite, and she was his host. He knew that if anything should happen to her, he couldn't survive on his own. He was weak and cowardly, dependent upon his mistress for protection. It was in his best interests that she survive. But, like any resourceful parasite, he was adaptive, he could attempt to ingratiate himself to one of her enemies in case she fell, or to cause her fall. Vhaeraun knew enough not to trust him, and Keptolo knew enough not to trust Vhaeraun, but Ilmater was likely unfamiliar with such a minor, little known deity He could play upon emotion, even try to evoke sympathy in that kind-hearted fool. . .

She paused for a moment to listen to the shrieks of the damned souls who made up the strands of her web. The eternal agony of those twisted strands of spirits gave her some comfort and joy. When she had brought the drow back into her web, many more strands would be added, punishment for their betrayal. She smiled, imagining ways in which to inflict suffering upon the unfaithful. They would know pain to make the deepest pits of The Abyss look like paradise itself.

Then a newly arrived soul in Demonweb Pits made her blood run cold. How was this possible? How could she not have seen. . . ? _No_!

A large rat, a visible brain pulsing with an odd green light nestled within its skull, sat boldly upon the bed of the Matron Mother's chamber, as if to show that Ilsensine was watching the little play with interest. Quenthel Baenre ignored it, and watched from the terrace of her palace as the fires burned across Menzoberranzan. The Arach-Tinilith had been destroyed by the Vhaeraunites. Sos'Umptu, her clerical, fanatical sister, was in near hysterics. Quenthel would not even speak with her, and refused to send troops to quell the growing riots. There wasn't much time left, the drow were evil, but they were not stupid. It was only a matter of time before they realized the truth. That which dwelled within the Matron Mother's body knew discovery was inevitable, but, in the meantime, it would do as much damage as it could to The City of The Spider Queen and her clergy, for the glory of Ghaunadaur.

To be continued. . .

Notes:

_Arach-Tinilith_ is the school for priestesses of Lolth in Menzoberranzan. Quenthel is head of the school, as well as the effective temporal ruler of the city itself.

_Melee Magthere_ is the school where drow boys are trained to become killers.


	2. Chapter 2

Acid Burns

Rizzen looked over the temple of Ghaunadaur with great pride. It had been hard work, taking over a decade of labor, but the black and purple structure, with it's portal resembling a massive eye, had finally been completed. Trolls, fomorians, hill giants and an increasing flow of drow refugees filled the ranks of The Servants of The Eye. Ghaunadaur had been with him, granting him abilities, including the ability to spit acid and transform his limbs into semi-solid pseudopods. The acid was a great help in dealing with ambitious trolls who had sought to overthrow him as leader, as it was one of the few things that could permanently harm a troll. He had also experienced some problems with angry clerics of Vaprak, the traditional god of trolls, but they had been dispatched by Ghaunadaur's power as well. Gristle, though ever faithful, would not be able to protect him forever, and Rizzen had to make sure that he could protect himself. The thought of life without his closest friend was difficult, but both had accepted that a drow's lifespan far outstretched that of a troll.

Apparently, from the stories told to him by drow adherents of the faith, Lolth was losing ground in the Underdark. He was saddened to hear that many of The Chosen of Eilistraee had been slaughtered, The Promenade destroyed, but they had taken one of Ghaunadaur's holiest sites, _The Pit of Ghaunadaur_, slain his avatar and the faithful attending it, and, to add insult to injury, built their own temple upon that holy ground. Eilistraee had done much for the drow people, and Rizzen held her in great respect, but he could not risk sympathizing too much with her, after all, The Eye was all-seeing, all-knowing. It would not do to have personal ties to one of his god's greatest enemies.

While he fervently hoped that Lolth would fall before her enemies, he prayed that it would not be Ilsensine who wrested control of The Underdark from her cursed claws. All that is not illithid is thrall. If the illithid god gained power over The Spider Queen's empire, the drow would know a whole new form of suffering as the helpless thralls of the merciless mind flayers. Ilix'Ith, priest of Maanzecorian, had been one of his greatest allies in the Underdark, along with Uru Drowbiter, but Ilix'Ith was mad and a heretic among his own race. He knew that most illithids were cold, ruthless beings who saw all other life as cattle to be enslaved and consumed.

Still, they had come far. He had been a slave, herding rothe among filthy goblins who resented and hated him, along with Gristle, who had protected him for years before a daring chitine and a mad illithid had freed them all, and saw him safely on his journey to the service of That Which Lurks. He had truly been blessed.

"Rizzen!" A twisted fomorian named Rek rushed into the temple, "There's a terrible monster outside!"

"Ghaunadaur is a god of monsters." He said flatly. It was true, most of Ghaunadaur's faithful were 'monsters' in the eyes of most races.

"This is a thing from _Her_!" Rek added. "And it calls for you!"

Rizzen grabbed his tentacle rod, it's seven tentacles writhing like serpents on the head of a medusa. Armed with the holy weapon of his faith, he stepped into the humid night air.

Gristle didn't know what to make of the ugly creature that had appeared outside the temple of Ghaunadaur, but he knew it was evil. That alone did not bother him, he was himself a 'monster', a troll, living among monsters, many of them evil. He was used to the sight of even the most repulsive of beasts, but this. . . Even the other trolls could see that it was not a thing of nature or even the world itself. It was some sort of demon, but not any kind he had ever seen before. It looked like a melting candle of rancid flesh. . . And it was calling Rizzen's name. . .

No one present had ever seen a creature such as this one, but many drow, including Rizzen, recognized it at once. A _yochlol_. A Handmaiden of Lolth, a demon who served as her attendant and proxy. It looked like a jelly, and stank like a rotting corpse. One red eye glared with boundless hate from it's slimy, melting flesh. Even the trolls, who feared almost nothing, held a respectful distance from the reeking, melting horror. Gristle snarled at the disgusting mass, but it ignored him. All heads turned toward the Slime Lord as he walked calmly to face the grotesque demon.

Why in the Nine Hells would Lolth send a yochlol to a backwater marsh separating a troll-filled swamp and a giant-filled forest?

"Why has Lolth sent a Handmaiden to this humble place?" Rizzen asked coolly, "Surely she has greater threats to deal with." "Do not question Lolth! As for why I am here. . ." The voice was glutenous, bubbling like tar, "I am here to punish Ghaunadaur for his attacks upon the faithful of Lolth." Rizzen was calm, he trusted his god against this pathetic minion of The Spider Queen, "Then why here?" The yochlol laughed, a sound like one makes when walking through thick mud, "You do not know?" She laughed again, "The Chosen of Ghaunadaur does not even know his station! How pitiful." Rizzen's eyes widened, his composure dropped for a moment, he knew that he had been gifted with great power and the position of Slime Lord, but _The Chosen of Ghaunadaur_ himself? "There is no challenge here, to destroy a low-born male whelp in the service of a god of filth." Gristle rumbled angrily, but Rizzen held him back, "Strong words from the slave of a filthy whore." The yochlol shrieked and lashed out, but Rizzen was ready, lunging forward and ramming his tentacle rod into the demon's one red eye. The yochlol's blow knocked him backwards, but his powers as a Slime Lord protected him from serious injury. As the wounded yochlol shrieked and flailed, Rizzen mumbled a hurried spell, summoning a Greater Spawn of Juiblex. A pool of bubbling slime began to seep up from the ground around the yochlol. The gigantic, fluid mass of slime and ooze was covered in eyes, including a single great eye, and its twisting, heaving bulk engulfed The Handmaiden. The two thrashed and hissed and screeched, the yochlol fighting to free herself from the titanic slime. Finally, the digestive acids of the Spawn overpowered the yochlol, and she melted into the mass of the gigantic ooze. The Spawn then vanished, leaving behind a stunned assembly of faithful. They had witnessed the power of their god, the power to slay a Handmaiden of Lolth.

In The Demonweb Pits, Lolth screamed in rage and hatred. She cared nothing for the life of the yochlol, but to have it defeated by a boy-priest of Ghaunadaur, a creature beneath contempt, was unthinkable. Keptolo heard and trembled, retreating into his small corner of the Pit, knowing well his mistress' deadly wrath.

"You killed a Handmaiden." Gristle said in awe. "No, Ghaunadaur killed it, I merely called his child here." Rizzen replied humbly.

No one noticed the cranium rat hiding within the branches of a nearby tree, its beady, glowing eyes trained upon the battlefield.

_Now this is interesting_, Ilsensine thought, _Ghaunadaur has now taken two powerful servants of Lolth_. She had discovered the other, but had yet to act against it, for some reason. Ilsensine considered the situation, if Lolth fell it would have far-reaching consequences, not just for the drow and chitine races, or even the Underdark as a whole, but the balance of power within the entire Abyss would be irrevocably altered, such was her importance. Though The God-Brain loathed the chaos of The Abyss, acquiring The Demonweb Pits would increase his power exponentially, allowing a foothold from which he could bring order to that chaotic plane.

He would follow these events carefully. . .

To be continued. . .

Notes:

Uru Drowbiter will return in a different story I'm working on. I have no plans for Ilix'Ith yet, though, but if I think of something, I'll right him a story too.

I always confuse _Fomorians_ and _Formians_. Fomorians are hideously deformed giant-kin, while Formians are ant-men.

I refer to Ilsensine as a male for convenience, some books call it a female, but it's actually neither, it's just a giant, sexless brain.

_Greater Spawn of Juiblex_ are titanic oozes and children of Juiblex, Lord of Slime.

_The Tentacle Rod _is a weapon used by priests of Ghaunadaur. Depending on the priest's clerical level, it has three, six or seven tentacles sprouting from the tip. Rizzen, as a Slime Lord of high rank, carries a tentacle rod with seven tentacles. One of its powers is _Blinding_.

_Slime Lords_ are priests of Ghaunadaur gifted with the ability to transform their limbs into powerful pseudopods of ooze.

_Rizzen Ken'Ghaunadaur_

Race - Drow

Sex - Male

Height - 5'2"

Weight - 90 Lbs

Alignment - Chaotic Neutral

Class - Cleric, Chosen of Ghaunadaur, Slime Lord

Patron Deity - Ghaunadaur/Juiblex

Rizzen was a houseless slave from Menzoberranzan who was befriended and protected by the troll Gristle. They were rescued from slavery and aided by Uru Drowbiter and Ilix'Ith. He went to the surface so that Gristle could live out his life among his people, but found that it was new territory for the followers of The Elder Eye.

_Gristle_

Race - Forest/Swamp Troll

Sex - Male

Height - 9'2"

Weight - 600 Lbs

Alignment - Neutral (Lawful tendencies)

Class - Fighter

Patron Deity - Ghaunadaur/Juiblex

While a slave of the drow, Gristle befriended the young drow slave Rizzen and loyally protected him throughout all their adventures, even fighting off a Githyanki raiding party who attacked them. He's noble even by human standards, and is a very unusual troll.


	3. Chapter 3

Apocalypse

Sos'Umptu Baenre knelt in the great Chapel of Lolth, praying fervently for guidance. So many drow were abandoning The Spider Queen, so much was going wrong. A servant of Ghaunadaur had slain a yochlol, a Handmaiden of Lolth! The Matron Mother of her own house and Mistress of Arach-Tinilith, Quenthel Baenre, was behaving treacherously against Lolth, and Menzoberranzan was in chaos. Other drow cities had already fallen into base apostasy, and she had heard rumors that the chitine were turning their backs upon her beloved mistress as well. Many great houses were breaking away from The True Faith. And, on top of it all, slaves, including drow slaves, were rebelling in massive numbers, turning upon their masters in hideous acts of vengeance. Despite this, Sos'Umptu was certain that The Spider Queen was already planning a just retribution upon all of the unfaithful. The idea that Lolth could be weakening never crossed her mind. Lolth could not be defeated. She looked up at the great image of Lolth, hovering above the altar, and she was not smiling.

Perhaps she was testing her people's resolve, weeding out the wicked and unfaithful.

Sos'Umptu turned to see a trembling male standing just outside the chapel, sword in hand. At least he had the respect not to enter the sanctuary. Sos'Umptu rose and went to meet him, he was one of Quenthel's personal guards. She gripped her lash, serpents writhing in fury. "The Matron Mother ordered me to kill you," The guard said, "But I fear Lolth more than I fear her." He knelt, trembling, at her feet. "You fear Lolth, yet you fear not to disobey the orders of your Matron Mother?" She was torn, his offense may have saved her life, but he had still sinned, "Give me your sword."

Quenthel Baenre had been acting oddly for the last several days, sending troops away from easy victories, ignoring apostate houses. She tolerated incompetent males and slaves she would normally have slain, after torture. She had done nothing as the followers of Vhaeraun, (curse his name!), had burnt The Arach-Tinilith to the ground. Perhaps she was no longer sanctioned by Lolth after all. She realized that Quenthel had not held her _Scourge of Fangs_, which would turn upon her had she lost Lolth's favor, in over a week. Sword in hand, Sos'Umptu turned back to look at the image of her goddess, to seek divine inspiration. It was no longer Lolth that stared down upon her. Suddenly, it all made sense. Sos'Umptu turned and ran toward the Matron's throne room, leaving the guard trembling and forgotten.

Quenthel Baenrae stood, an impassive look upon her ebony face, as her sister charged into the room, sword in hand. Before the stunned guards could react, she threw the sword like a javelin, striking her sister in the chest, knocking her off her feet and back onto the blood-spattered throne. The guards immediately turned to Sos'Umptu, having assassinated her sister, she could now rightly claim title of Matron Mother. The priestess simply pointed at the corpse in disgust. Quenthel's corpse shook and spasmed, then, her beautiful head literally _exploded_, fragments of bone and flesh striking the nearest guards, as a blood-drenched, brain-like horror leaped to the stone floor, landing on four strong, clawed limbs.

An _Intellect Devourer_.

This creature, this _thing_ had been ruling Menzoberranzan, The Holy City of The Spider Queen!

"Kill it!" Sos'Umptu shrieked as the creature skittered across the floor, dodging the blades of the shocked guards. She could not allow such a blasphemy to go unpunished. She was too angry to consider taking it alive for later torture. She wanted it dead. Now. She conjured _Creeping Doom_, and a wave of spiders and scorpions swarmed up from the cracks in the stone floor, rushing in unison toward the intellect devourer. One of the guards, caught in its path, was swiftly devoured by the ravenous swarm. The body thief used a psionic attack, _Concussion Blast_, causing its pursuers to fall to the floor in agony and crushing the spiders beneath its mental might. Sos'Umptu, shielded by a _Tower of Iron Will_, hissed in rage, she was not skilled in combat, and these males were worse than useless. She grabbed the nearest sword as the creature scuttled up the wall, and began swinging. The body thief jumped onto her sister's headless body, as if taunting her. It then leaped upon her, its force knocking her to the ground, the sword was flung from her hand.

"A gift from That Which Lurks." The surviving guards spoke in unison, under the thrall of the beast. The vile creature stood there for a moment, as if in triumph, then fled down the corridor leading to the gates. By the time fresh guards had reached the audience chamber, it was gone.

The sharp eyes of the cranium rat captured all for The Tentacled Lord.

Guards helped Sos'Umptu to her feet, but she angrily shook them off. She was literally trembling with rage. How could this happen? How could such vermin have infiltrated House Baenre, much less murdered and impersonated the Matron Mother? There would be much suffering over this. And she could not allow the knowledge that the Mistress of Menzoberranzan was dead to reach outside the house. In the cities' current state, the power vacuum would cause the city to fall totally into anarchy. Someone would have to lead the drow through this crisis. Sos'Umptu had no ambition beyond serving Lolth, but if that meant taking control of The City of The Spider Queen, so be it.

Lolth's will be done.

To be continued. . .

Notes:

Intellect Devourers are cool. A great way for DM's to torment their players.

The term _Scourge of Fangs_ comes from the book _Serpent Kingdoms_ by Ed Greenwood, Eric L. Boyd and Darrin Drader. That is the Yuan-Ti name for it, I don't know if the drow call it that. It was originally a Yuan-Ti weapon, but the drow liked it's ability to cause suffering so much they started using it themselves. Among the drow, if someone without Lolth's favor handles the scourge, the serpents will turn upon them and bite the. Hence, our nameless friend could not carry one.

Sos'Umptu is a very humble, pious woman by drow standards, she doesn't want power, she just wants to please Lolth.


	4. Chapter 4

Armageddon

Malar didn't like any of them, and he certainly didn't trust trust them. The Dark Seldarine were possibly the most deceptive beings, outside of Cyric, that he had ever encountered. And all, save the newly 'reformed' Selvetarm, were represented in this hidden glade within his domain, The Land of The Hunt. It was hoped they could escape Lolth's gaze here, something Malar doubted. Ghaunadaur's avatar stood in the shadows, sullen and silent, he hadn't spoken at all during the planning of this ambitious conspiracy. Vhaeraun's avatar, on the other hand, seemed confident of success. Zinzerena was both enthused and amused by the idea, and Kiaransalee glared suspiciously at the other assembled avatars, doubt clearly etched in her craggy, skull-like face. Malar noted the presence of a sixth deity, after a fashion. A large rat sat on its haunches in the shadows, a throbbing, luminescent green vein visible within its exposed brain. A cranium rat, a spy of The Tentacled Lord, but even Malar knew better than attack one of the eyes of Ilsensine. The Illithid God Brain had no love for Lolth either, and it probably knew the entire plot already, anyway.

"How do we know it will even recognize that _thing_ as an elf?" Kiaransalee rasped, "She surely doesn't look like one."

Ilsensine calculated a 72% chance that Ityak-Ortheel would not recognize Lolth as an elf, but that hardly mattered, considering the sheer destructive power of the beast. It was a brash and dangerous move on the part of The Dark Seldarine, Lolth was a powerful entity, even now, in her weakened state, and her wrath was terrible to behold. Ityak-Ortheel was a mindless force of destruction. Malar could _summon_ The Elf Eater, but not even The Beastlord could _control_ it. The best he could do was place it amongst his enemies and allow it to act according to its vicious nature. It was also a 100% certainty that, should the plot succeed, the assembled deities would turn upon each other. Ilsensine was content to observe, let the vultures tear themselves apart, then glide in to clean up the mess. At the very least, this would be a fascinating spectacle.

Zinzerina laughed, "It will certainly recognize Keptolo as an elf!" She had a personal, mutual grudge with The Willing Consort. She had manipulated him and stolen a portion of his divinity. If this plan worked, she might very well steal his life itself. Though Malar would greatly enjoy the sight of The Elf Eater rampaging throughout The Demonweb Pits, hunting The Spider Queen, he also recognized what a cunning and powerful enemy they were facing. "The Elf Eater is a massive being," Malar argued, "If she retreats to her web, it may not be able to follow. Or, she could simply _Portal_ away. . ."

Vhaeraun smiled, his handsome face half-concealed by a crimson mask, "She will have no choice. Faced with the destruction of her realm, she will have to intervene."

"And if we fail?"

"We wont." Vhaeraun said confidently.

Ilsensine found The Masked Lord's reasoning somewhat flawed. Lolth could attack the Elf Eater from the safety of her web, and lure it over the edge, into the Abyss. Unless it attacked while she was away from the safety of The Crawling Fortress. And she was not above fleeing, allowing the beast to destroy her realm and returning once it had left. Unless something hindered her escape. . .

Summoning Ityak-Ortheel required the assistance of Malar, as only he knew the location of Elvengrave, The Elf Eater's realm. Vhaeraun distrusted the Beastlord, but he didn't have any other choice. The fact that Malar had often sent Ityak-Ortheel to devour the haughty elves of Faerun worked in his favor, and it was clear that he desired Lolth's demise as much as they did. The question was whether or not he coveted her realm as well. As soon as the spell was cast Malar vanished, having no desire to face Lolth should the plan fail. It was unimportant, he was no longer needed. Vhaeraun quickly opened a _Portal,_ he had to reach The Crawling Citadel before the others could claim his mother's power.

The Midwife of Lolth had been left to guard the _Portal_ to The Demonweb Pits from all save those Lolth personally called to her. But she was unprepared for the thirty-foot monstrosity that appeared before her. The demoness refused to flee, however, she was loyal to her mistress, regardless of the cost to herself. She attacked The Elf Eater, her blade digging deep into a leg the size of a small tower, "By Lolth's command, you shall not pass!" She shrieked. The wound vanished, and a massive, elephantine foot smashed her into a slick stain of ichor before the beast stumbled through the _Portal_ and into The Demonweb Pits in search of delicious elven souls.

Lolth's web shook. It was more than the minor tremor of some stray demon treading upon her realm, it was the pounding of a titan. And it was moving in her direction. The shrieks that reached Lolth's ears were different than those agonized screamed of the damned that she so enjoyed. They were screams, not of pain, but of mortal terror. And mingled with the cries of the damned were the screams of their demonic tormentors. Something was attacking her realm!

Ityak-Ortheel plodded mindlessly through Lolth's realm, crushing beneath its feet any demons too slow to escape. It resembled an enormous mushroom perched atop three thick legs. Its forty tentacles, each over a hundred feet long, thrashed about blindly, occasionally grabbing some screaming soul and dragging it into its toothless maw. The drow Petitioners of Lolth were its target, the massive spiders and demons were merely annoyances standing in the way of the Elf Eater and the tasty dark elf souls.

Lolth stopped dead in her tracks and gaped in horror as the monstrosity ravaged her realm. She knew of the Elf Eater, but it had always attacked the Tel'quessir, never the Ilythiiri. And certainly never her! She knew instantly what had happened, only Malar had access to Ityak-Ortheel, only he held its leash. And he had turned his beast upon her. She cursed The Beastlord with blasphemies that would have made even Asmodeus cringe, and reached for her bow. She wished that Selvetarm were here, her Champion would have stood no chance against the thing, of course, but he would have delayed it long enough for her to formulate a plan of attack. She drew her bow and began shooting off arrows covered in her own virulent poison.

Keptolo stood stunned upon a cliff overlooking the devastation. He could never hope to match a creature born of the blood of two mighty gods. And, apparently, neither could Lolth. He stopped only to snatch away his portfolio before opening a _Portal_, and fleeing with his petitioners into the Abyss. He would return when, or if, it was safe. Vhaeraun watched the god flee, then stepped from the shadows and teleported into The Crawling Fortress, laughing.

Lolth's arrows bounced off the being's hard carapace like pebbles against chainmail. Her attacks upon its legs were similarly useless, it seemed immune to her poison. It continued to devour shrieking souls and crush the demonic hordes she sent against it, seeming unaware of their very presence. An army of spiders of all shapes and sizes swarmed the beast, crawling up its limbs, covering every inch of its surface until it looked like a titanic, walking mass of crawling spiders, but the Elf Eater seemed unaffected by their poison. Brushing some away with its tentacles, it crushed bebiliths and spiders beneath its massive hoofs and writhing tentacles. It turned in her general direction, and she fled, the thundering beast hot on her heels, crushing all in its path. Even her most powerful minions were being smashed or devoured by the brute. Her Handmaidens and Midwives were helpless. A long tentacle snagged a yochlol, dragging the Handmaiden screaming into its bloody maw. Lolth hurriedly cast a _Portal_ spell, but nothing happened. Her spells were being blocked! But who could do such a thing?

The cranium rat skittered up the cliff, dodging spiders and seeking a better view of the carnage. A large spider lashed out at it, only to fall stunned by its Mind Blast. When it found a good vantage point, it sat back to watch the show.

Ghaunadaur stood in the shadows, unconcerned with the spiders and demons, they were far to busy fleeing for their lives or rushing to their deaths. That Which Lurks calmly slithered across the web to enter The Crawling Fortress. Two divine portfolios lay within, the abandoned portfolio of Selvetarm and Lolth's own. He was not surprised to see Vhaeraun already there. The Masked Lord whipped out his enchanted daggers even as a pseudopod struck him square in the chest, impaling him upon a solid stake of slime. Ghaunadaur did not spare the dying avatar a second glance as he gathered up Lolth and Selvetarm's portfolios, and slithered away.

As he reformed on the other side of the web, the Portfolios crumbled into a fine dust. Ghaunadaur howled in rage, he had been duped!

She slashed at the beast's probing tentacles, severing one, it was a futile act, the stump began to regrow as swiftly as it had been cut. She had happily watched the elves battle in vain with Ityak-Ortheel, laughing as weapons mundane, magical and divine, failed to halt the accursed thing. The only thing the elves could do was flee, preferably by _Portal_ to another continent. Even the Seldarine could not save its people from the ravages of The Elf Eater. She knew she was in grave danger. Yet, she had one slim hope. The creature was so heavy that it could not possibly track her into her web above the Abyss, all she had to do was reach the web and watch the mindless behemoth fall. That was easier said than done. Lolth shrieked in agony as a long tentacle snagged her right forth leg, snapping it off. The web came into view, her only hope was that it wouldn't. . . A thick tentacle snagged her around the thorax, then another. Ityak-Ortheel had captured its prey, but its momentum was too great. The Elf Eater reached Lolth's web even as it drew her screaming toward its maw. Unable to stop, it fell into the web, but the strands, woven from the screaming, twisted, tortured souls of the damned, were not strong enough to hold its weight. Ityak-Ortheel plunged headlong into the infinite darkness of the Abyss, carrying the shrieking Spider Queen with it. The Crawling Fortress stumbled, falling after its mistress, dragging the last traces of her torn, tattered web with it into the Abyss.

In The Chapel of Lolth in Menzoberranzan, Sos'Umptu Baenre fell dead as the great, illusory image of Lolth faded into nothingness.

Zinzerena Laughed as she thought of the fake Portfolios she had left inside The Crawling Fortress, even as she clutched the true ones to her chest. Vhaeraun had doubtless found them by now, she wondered what his smug face looked like as they crumbled into dust. As she moved to open the _Portal_, a violet light filled the area around her. She didn't even have time to scream before she fell, her mind void, wiped clean. The Ulitharid knelt beside the fallen avatar, a slender, mauve hand taking the prize from her grasp_. _Soon, this would all be property of The Tentacled Lord, and he would bring Order to Chaos. . .

He never saw the blow coming.

Selvetarm stood over the unconscious Ulitharid. It was a dangerous thing to anger Ilsensine, but he could not allow the powers in those Portfolios to fall into the God-Brain's tentacles.

He knew exactly what to do.

On the 181st layer of The Abyss, The Rotting Plane, dwells Laogzed, that gluttonous deity that devours and destroys everything that passes into its gaping maw. Selvetarm stood before the sluggish, bloated toad-lizard, mired down in thick, stinking slime. Laogzed, if he noticed him at all, made no indication of it. Ignoring the river of weeping, damned souls being herded around him and into the god's open, cavernous mouth, Selvetarm flung the portfolios into that ravenous abyss of absolute destruction.

Laogzed let out a loud, foul-smelling belch.

Selvetarm returned to Arvandor for a hot bath.

The End.

_Notes_:

There certainly are a lot of damned souls about, aren't there? Can a Divine Portfolio be destroyed? Yes! My story, my rules!

_Ityak-Ortheel_, The Elf Eater was born from the mingled blood of Corellon Larethian, head of the Seldarine, and Gruumsh, leader of the orc pantheon. For some reason it hates elves and destroys them whenever possible. It can only truly die on it's home plane, Elvengrave, so the elves shouldn't celebrate too much. It may seem cowardly of them to use a mindless monster to fight Lolth for them, but, hey, they're evil, she's powerful, and Ityak-Ortheel is immune to most attacks, both mortal and divine.

_The Crawling Fortress_ is a spider-shaped iron machine/palace in which dwell Lolth and, (presumably), Keptolo. I don't think it's officially named, but I call it The Crawling Fortress. Why could the web bear its weight and not Ityak-Ortheel's? He fell onto a weak section of the web, and the combined weight was too great to bear. Besides, I wrote it that way!

I have no idea what exactly a _Midwife of Lolth_ is, but it is apparently a very powerful type of demon in her service.

_Laogzed_

The Devourer

The Eater of Souls

The Toad-Lizard

Rank - Demipower

Alignment - Chaotic Evil

Realm - The Rotting Plane, 181st Layer of The Abyss

The troglodyte god of gluttony, slime, hunger and destruction.

Laogzed is a lazy, gluttonous, slimy toad-lizard who simply sits there as demons herd damned souls into his open maw, (he'll eat the demons too, if they get too close). Other powers use him as a living garbage disposal, feeding him things they want to get rid of.

Why didn't Keptolo steal Lolth and Selvetarm's portfolios? He figured that if he did, and Lolth survived, she'd kill him, even with the power they would have granted him. He's a little coward at heart. I have a bit more sympathy for him now, he's a pathetic little bitch, but he's surviving the only way he can. He'll probably attach himself to some other goddess for protection. Probably he'll pick Sharess, goddess of hedonism and sensual pleasure, (An aspect of Sharess, _Zandilar the Dancer,_ was Selvetarm's mother, in fact). Since Keptolo is the a god of sexual prowess, drinking, flattery and deception, they'd probably make a good fit. Two deities of sex and intoxication walk into a tavern. . . I doubt the Chaotic Good Sharess would let a little thing like the fact he's Chaotic Evil get in the way of a relationship.

_Asmodeus_ is the Archdevil, Ruler of The Nine Hells, and a really, really bad person. Not as evil as Lolth, but evil.


End file.
